FIRST INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT TRIAL COMES TO A CLOSE
By Tamara Alfred
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa
The International Criminal Court concludes its first war crimes trial this week against Thomas Lubanga, a Congolese warlord.
Lubanga, 50, an ethnic Hema, was charged with enlisting and conscripting children as young as nine to his Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC) movement to kill members of the rival Lendu tribe during the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was the first international case to focus exclusively on child soldiers and the opening trial at the world’s first permanent war crimes tribunal. Despite multiple setbacks, the conclusion of the two-year trial demonstrates the ICC’s ability to hear even the trickiest of cases.
“It is the first ICC trial finally coming to an end and it’s evidence that the ICC can conduct trials, despite the fact it has taken a considerably long time,” said Mariana Pena of the Federation for Human Rights in The Hague.
More than 30,000 child soldiers were recruited during the Democratic Republic of Congo’s civil war. Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said that Lubanga’s armed group recruited “hundreds of children to kill, pillage and rape.”
Lubanga has denied all charges, saying he was a politician, not a warlord, and never played an active role in the UPC’s militia. His defense has argued that he is being tried as political scapegoat and that other leaders of the UPC and DRC bear greater responsibility. The defense also claims that Lubanga in fact tried to liberate child soldiers, not recruit them.
The defense has also alleged that child soldiers who testified invented stories and suggested that they had been coached or bribed to give false evidence. Additionally, the defense has also put forth major accusations of prosecutorial misconduct.
The trial was put on hold for six months in June 2008 – 10 days before it was scheduled to start – when judges ruled that Moreno-Ocampo had not given lawyers evidence that could have helped Lubanga, prompting criticism that Lubanga was not receiving a fair trial. The documents were later released on the condition of confidentiality to protect the sources; just one of the ways the ICC was forced during the trial to find ways of shielding witnesses while giving testimony, as well as figuring out how to share materials with the defense without endangering sources because the materials reveal their identities.
“Disclosure obligations are non-negotiable,” said Alison Cole of the Open Society Justice Initiative, “and there are positive signs that lessons with respect to evidence management are being internalized within the court.”
Judges again halted the trial in July 2010 and ordered Lubanga’s release when prosecutors defied a court order to reveal the identity of an intermediary who had helped them contact witnesses. Prosecutors appealed and Lubanga remained in custody. Prosecutors revealed the identity of their intermediary to the defense in the end and the trial continued.
Prosecution and defense lawyers will conclude their arguments on Thursday and Friday before the three-judge panel leaves to consider the verdict. A judgment is expected in early 2010 as the judges’ terms end in March.
The ICC is currently conducting three other trials, all of Congolese suspects, including the country’s former vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba.
More recently, the ICC has issued indictments in the Darfur conflict in Sudan and of Libya’s fallen leader Gaddafi, as well as his son Saif al-Islam and Libyan intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi on charges of crimes against humanity for their role in the killing of civilian protesters at the start of the recent uprising.
“I found that fear of the ICC a healthy development in international law,” Radhika Coomaraswamy, the UN special envoy for children in armed conflicts, told the Associated Press regarding the power of the ICC. “Nobody can measure how many children have been saved because of deterrence. That’s not something you can measure, but hopefully that will be the case.”
For more information, please see:
The Guardian – Judges urged to convict Congo warlord Thomas Lubanga – 25 August 2011
Voice of America – ICC’s First War Crimes Trial Comes to Close – 25 August 2011
Reuters – ICC’s landmark debut trial concludes after two years – 24 August 2011
International Push for Transitional Libya to Respect Human Rights
By Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
TRIPOLI, Libya — In the last few days, the world has watched closely as Libya finally began to shake off the last remnants of its Qaddafi problem, and began a new chapter in its history. After six months of intense fighting, the Libyan opposition took control of large parts of Tripoli, Libya’s capital and Qaddafi’s base of operations.
The National Transitional Council (TNC), the recognized face of the opposition, now has the job of picking up the pieces of Libya, and completing its goal for a “free and dignified” Libya.
The TNC derives its legitimacy from the decisions of local councils set up by the people of the cities and villages that have already been “liberated” by the rebel opposition. So far 46 countries have recognized the council as a legitimate governing body, with the notable exceptions being the People’s Republic of China and Russia, both of which had business dealings with Qaddafi’s regime.
Numerous international actors, including foreign governments and human rights organizations, are urging the TNC to take the steps necessary to prevent lawlessness and reprisals from Qaddafi supporters.
“The National Transitional Council has set a good tone for the transition with forceful statements about justice and human rights,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director of Human Rights Watch. “But concrete steps are urgently needed to avoid revenge, protect vulnerable people and help promote the rule of law.”
So far the TNC is working to prevent revenge killings, but some have already occurred. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has asked the council to step up the security for pro-Qaddafi Libyans, including those who were displaced from rebel territories and those who are accused of serving as mercenaries for Qaddafi.
Despite help from NATO, the job of trying the criminals of the revolution is being laid at the feet of the TNC. State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland notes that while Qaddafi and his followers must face justice for all the “blood on their hands” such accountability needs to be “Libyan-led.”
HRW has also asked the TNC to protect all institutions that have become symbols of Qaddafi’s oppression such as the prisons, police stations, courthouses, and other government buildings. Both the TNC and interested international onlookers hope to avoid what happened in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein, when many government buildings were looted and damaged and documents were destroyed.
In response to its new duty, the TNC has issued a call for a unified Libya. They do not want any more civilian deaths in what has already been a deadly conflict.
Further, the TNC has promised to hold elections next April to choose a new permanent government for Libya. This announcement, made by Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the TNC chairman, comes as world leaders prepare to meet to discuss Libya’s future. “We want a democratic government and a just constitution,” Jalil said.
Jalil and other members of the TNC have said that they will not seek office in the elections, but that they will still play a central role in the country’s immediate future.
As Amnesty International has said these are “momentous, but extremely dangerous” days for the people of Libya, but it is hoped by many that cool head will prevail and allow for a peaceful, human transition.
For more information, please see:
Amnesty — Both Sides in Libya conflict must protect detainees from torture — 25 Aug 2011
CNN — Group urges Libyans to respect human rights in transition — 24 Aug 2011
Huffington Post — Libya: a Revolution’s Endgame — 24 Aug 2011
New York Times — Sarkozy Assures Libyan Rebel Leader — 24 Aug 2011
The Telegraph — Libya: leaders promise elections next year — 24 Aug 2011
Voice of America — US Human Rights Groups Urge No Retribution in Libya — 23 Aug 2011
Chinese government closing schools that serve the children of migrant workers
By: Jessica Ties
Impunity Watch, Asia
BEIJING, China – The Chinese government has shut down 24 schools that had served the children of migrant workers in Beijing and has resulted in 40, 000 students being forced to scramble for new placements just two weeks before the new semester was scheduled to begin.
The 24 schools affected were located in the Daxing, Chaoyang and Haidian districts of Beijing which have long been home to migrant workers.
While the district government closure orders stated that the school closures were due to”…illegal construction, illegal operation, and safety concerns”, many are skeptical of the government’s motives.
Some of the skeptics suggest that school closures were caused by property developers who are anxious to continue expanding Beijing, while others believe that the school closures are a ploy to force migrant workers to leave the city. Fueling the latter suspicion is the memory of plans made last year by eastern Beijing’s Chaoyang district, in which 3,900 students were affected by the school closures, to ask approximately one million migrant workers to leave the city to alleviate strain on “social security and pollution.”
Under China’s residence permit system, the hokou system, the government designates each citizen based on their place of residence and determines which social services individuals are eligible to receive. Under the hokou system migrant workers living in Beijing, which numbered approximately five million, generally remained registered in their hometown making their children ineligible to register in Beijing schools. As a result, the children of migrant workers are only permitted to attend private schools that are often unapproved and unregistered.
In the Haidian district of Beijing, New Hope School was demolished on August 10 but official announcements were not made until eight days following the demolition. New Hope School had approximately 1,000 students ranging from kindergarten to ninth grade, all of which were forced to find placement elsewhere.
Following the school closure’s, officials assured students and their parents that they would find placements for the children who were displaced. Some individuals; however, do not believe that the government will maintain it’s promise.
Geoffrey Crothall, the director of communications for China Labour Bulletin expressed his skepticism of the government’s promise by stating that, “…they set the threshold for school placement qualifications so high that the vast majority of migrant families cannot meet the requirements.” This concern is exemplified by the fact that only 70 students out of the 1,000 who were displaced from New Hope School have been able to gather the required documentation to have their children placed in the Beijing school system.
The requirements are so difficult to meet that of the approximately 1,000 students displaced from the New Hope School, only 70 have been able to gather the required documents to have their children placed in the school system.
For more information, please see:
The Wall Street Journal – Will School Closures Prompt Migrants to flee? – 19 August 2011
MSNBC – In Beijing, 40,000 Students Stranded – 18 August 2011
Radio Free Asia – Anger Over Migrant School Closures– 18 August 2011
Reuters – Closure of Migrant Children Schools in China Sparks Anguish – 18 August 2011
BBC – Migrant Schools Closed in Chinese Capital -17 August 2011
Extradition hearing set for Croatian woman living in Kentucky
By Greg Hall
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
LEXINGTON, Kentucky, United States of America – An extradition hearing has been set for a Croatian woman, Azra Basic, who had been living in the United States but was charged with murder and torture relating to the collapse of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Basic has become a naturalized citizen of the United States. Basic’s attorney, Patrick Nash, has questioned the motion for Basic’s extradition and seeks to dismiss the case.
“I think we’ve got a really valid argument on the dismissal motion, using a treaty of this age in the way they’re using it is fraught with problems,” Nash said, further noting that the statute of limitations has expired on the alleged crimes.
Assistant U.S. Attorney James Arehart said in a motion that it is up to the executive branch of the federal government to determine if a treaty is in effect, even though the country has changed names and forms of government. “The political ideologies of the predecessor and successor states are irrelevant,” Arehart wrote.
Basic is accused of torturing and killing ethnic Serbs at prison camps from April to June in 1992.
Basic had been living in Powell County in Kentucky for several years and working in a nursing home before her arrest in March of this year. Friends of Basic refer to her as a “big-hearted” person, who was so scarred by her experience in Croatia that she could not watch war movies and cut all ties with her homeland. They defend her by saying that she was in a place of war and forced to make impossible moral choices.
Now after almost twenty years, Basic faces extradition back to Bosnia. If convicted of the alleged crimes, Basic could spend the rest of her life in prison. Basic states that she is not pleased with the current situation but understands the legal process takes time.
People that know Basic and her story state that she was just acting as a human being. Others are calling for justice for her alleged atrocities.
The United Nations estimates that nearly 104,000 people died in the ethnic strife. The conflict was the most brutal since World War II.
For more information please see:
Chron.com – Hearing set for woman accused of Bosnia war crimes – 22 August 2011
The Republic – Federal Court hearing set for woman accused of Bosnia war crimes in Yugoslav wars – 22 August 2011
New York Times – Dark past in Balkan war intrudes on new life – 3 April 2011